Englewood Cliffs council proposes 35-foot height limit on buildings

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS - After several tumultuous debates and a pouring of outrage from the public, the council introduced an ordinance that would repeal a controversial zoning law that allows constructing high-rises buildings.

The July 9 vote would set the maximum building height at 35 feet, the original limit, eliminating fears of future corporate high-rise developments. The measure, though, still requires a second hearing and final vote before the change is official.

However, the proposed changes would not impact LG Electronics USA's development of its 143-foot North American headquarters at 111 Sylvan Ave.

"This is a surprise, a good surprise," said resident Carin Geiger, who has lobbied the council to repeal the zoning laws, and created an organization to pressure officials. "It's what I believe the community wants."

The Borough Council also voted 5-1 to place a non-binding referendum question on the November ballot concerning building height.

Councilwoman Gloria Oh voted no because now that governing body introduced an to revert the zoning laws to a 35-foot limit, there's no reason for a non-binding referendum.

The wording of the referendum question - which was hotly debated - is yet to be determined, according to Borough Attorney E. Carter Corriston.

The council is expected to vote on the wording at the July 22 meeting.

The effort to revert the law back to the original 35-foot height came after lengthy discussion that Councilman Edward Aversa started.

The councilman initially proposed capping building height at 65 feet, which is slightly below the tree line.

But that proposal was met with a wildly mixed reaction from the public attending the council meeting. As a result, Aversa made a motion to revert back to the original 35-foot height limit.

Building height has sparked a heated debate in Englewood Cliffs ever since LG proposed its new North American headquarters.

In 2012, the zoning board, now dissolved, granted the electronics company several variances for construction of the project, including exceeding the 35-foot building height limit.

After two residents sued, the Borough Council changed the zoning on the corporate stretch of Sylvan Avenue to allow for buildings of up to 90 feet on lots between 5 and 25 acres, and up to 150 feet on properties of at least 25 acres.

LG's property is 27 acres, making it the only property large enough to construct a building up to the 150-foot maximum.

A court battle brought on by multiple preservationists to repeal the LG variance is still ongoing.

After the council voted to introduce the zoning, the Planning Board announced that continued hearings on the proposed master plan - which would codify the previous zoning requirements - have been postponed indefinitely.